# PEGELONLINE Water Levels Scraper (`parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes water level measurements from PEGELONLINE gauge stations. Returns each reading as a flat row with station name, water body, timestamp, and measured value.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, Automation, Other
- **Stats:** 1 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $7.50 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### PEGELONLINE Water Levels Scraper

**Scrape water level measurements from every PEGELONLINE gauge station in Germany.** Get current and historical readings, station metadata, and water body details. No API key or login. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

PEGELONLINE publishes water level data for thousands of gauges across German federal waterways, but the official API requires registration and has rate limits. This Actor reads the public station list and measurement endpoints directly, filtered by station name or water body, and returns each reading in one fixed schema.

| Who uses it | What they scrape PEGELONLINE for |
|---|---|
| Hydrologists | Monitor river levels for flood forecasting and water resource management |
| Logistics planners | Check navigability of inland waterways for barge and ship scheduling |
| Environmental researchers | Analyze long-term water level trends and climate impact on rivers |
| Data journalists | Report on drought or flood conditions using official gauge data |

### What it does

This Actor collects water level measurements from PEGELONLINE gauge stations and returns each reading as a flat row with station name, water body, timestamp, and measured value.

- 📍 **Station name filter:** keep only gauges whose name contains your text, like 'KOLN' or 'Celle'.
- 🌊 **Water body filter:** narrow to rivers or canals such as 'RHEIN', 'ELBE', or 'ALLER'.
- 🔢 **Measurement limit:** set how many readings to collect per run, from 1 to 1,000,000.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with PEGELONLINE data

**🌧️ Flood monitoring.**

A hydrologist filters stations on the Rhine and collects the latest readings every hour to feed an early warning dashboard.

**🚢 Inland shipping.**

A logistics planner pulls water levels for the Elbe to decide whether barges can pass a critical section this week.

**📊 Climate research.**

An environmental scientist scrapes historical measurements from multiple stations to study long-term river level changes.

**📰 News reporting.**

A data journalist gathers current gauge data across Germany to illustrate a story on summer drought conditions.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **Official data** | Readings come directly from PEGELONLINE, the federal waterways authority |
| **No API key** | No registration or authentication needed to start scraping |
| **Flexible filters** | Target specific stations or entire water bodies with simple text matching |
| **Scalable output** | Collect up to a million measurements per run and export in common formats |

### How it compares

No other Store actor targets PEGELONLINE the same way, so the honest comparison is with the alternatives teams actually weigh.

| | PEGELONLINE Water Levels Scraper | Build it in-house | By hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup | Run it now, zero config | Days of engineering | None, but hours per pull |
| When PEGELONLINE changes | Maintained for you | You fix it | You re-learn the page |
| Proxies, retries, anti-bot | Built in | Your problem | Browser only |
| Output | Fixed JSON schema, CSV/Excel export | Whatever you build | Copy-paste |
| Cost | Pay per result | Engineering time | Analyst hours |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor with optional station name and water body filters, and set a maximum number of measurements per run. Leave filters empty to pull the full national network. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.017 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $1.70 |
| 1,000 results | $17.00 |
| 10,000 results | $170.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [PEGELONLINE Water Levels Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to PEGELONLINE through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check your station or water body filter. The text must appear somewhere in the name. Try a shorter fragment or leave the filter empty to see all stations.

**Why did the run stop before collecting all measurements?**

You likely hit the maximum measurements limit. Increase the maxItems value in the input, up to 1,000,000.

**The data looks incomplete for a station.**

PEGELONLINE may not provide historical readings for every station. The Actor returns only what is currently available from the public endpoints.

**Can I schedule this Actor to run automatically?**

Yes. Use Apify's scheduler to run the Actor at regular intervals, such as hourly or daily, to keep your dataset updated.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need an API key or login for PEGELONLINE? | No. This Actor reads the public data endpoints directly, so no registration or authentication is required. |
| Can I filter by a specific river or canal? | Yes. Use the water body filter with a text fragment like 'RHEIN' or 'ELBE'. The match is case-insensitive and returns all stations on that water body. |
| How many measurements can I collect in one run? | You can set the maximum measurements from 1 to 1,000,000. The Actor stops after reaching that limit. |
| What does each measurement record include? | Each row contains the station name, water body, timestamp of the reading, and the measured water level value, along with other station metadata. |
| Can I get historical water level data? | The Actor returns the measurements currently available from PEGELONLINE, which may include recent historical readings depending on the station. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export the dataset as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML from the Apify platform. |
| Is the station name filter case-sensitive? | No, the filter is case-insensitive. Searching for 'koln' will match 'KOLN'. |
| Can I scrape all stations in Germany? | Yes. Leave both filters empty and set a high maximum measurements value to pull the full national network. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Wasserstraßen- und Schifffahrtsverwaltung des Bundes. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `station` (type: `string`):

Optional. Keep only stations whose name contains this text, case-insensitive. For example 'KOLN' or 'Celle'. Leave empty to return every station.

## `water` (type: `string`):

Optional. Keep only stations on a water body whose name contains this text, case-insensitive. For example 'RHEIN', 'ELBE', or 'ALLER'. Leave empty for all water bodies.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many water level measurements to collect per run.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "maxItems": 10 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/pegelonline-water-levels-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/xGdRwYevekdEM5dqv/builds/zMdlvFuCvA9LXAEBL/openapi.json